Life here has turned up side down.
Real estate assessments, searching for acreages, condos on the island, talking to the accountant about tax implications, it sure sounds like leaving the farm to me.
Scared senseless, more like. I waffle between excitement and horror. I don't think anyone can do one job for 35 years and not feel panic at the thought of having to learn to do something else, especially in their fifties.
In an ideal world we wouldn't have to work after we sell, but interest rates being what they are even a million dollars in the bank will only make you at best 25,000. per year....and they say it takes about 3500-4500 per month for a couple to retire comfortably. that comes to nearly 50,000. per year....a long, long way from 25,000. so we hope to only have to have part time jobs so we have lots of time to spend together. Old age pension is a few years away.
Actually in an ideal world, we would be able to make a living here the way were able to ten years ago. But the fact is, government wants to squeeze out the small farmer, and have big corporate farms working in tandem with the packing plants, they've done it to the HOG guys and their are decimated. Financially, the writing is on the wall for us, but our hearts are telling us we're not ready to quit yet. It's the land, it's hard to tear yourself away. It's worked its way into your lungs, bone and sinew, until the thought of leaving it feels like ripping a limb off without anesthetic.
This coming year will be the teller. But hold onto your hats, cause it's gonna be a whing-dinger.
Splendor
November 30, 2012
November 10, 2012
A Busy Week Past
I was busy all week doing nothing basically, you know what that's like. Quick trips to town for banking, odds and ends groceries, a bit of laundry, vaccuming and such, preparing meals and zippo the days are gone. I did manage to get a bit of painting done late in the afternoons. Here are three of my latest efforts. Some better than others but it keeps the cabin fever at bay so I keep trying.
Okay, I apologize, BLOGGER won't let me upload my latest paintings to this post. You'll have to check them out on face book or flickr.
This coming week we will finally put this years calves on the truck and send them off to market. Fingers crossed we top the market, they are a pretty nice set of calves. So tuesday they get loaded, Wednesday we make the three hour drive to watch them sell and get the cheque, on Thursday we have to deliver some freezer beef and again on Friday. See, I told you it was a busy couple of weeks.
Okay, I apologize, BLOGGER won't let me upload my latest paintings to this post. You'll have to check them out on face book or flickr.
This coming week we will finally put this years calves on the truck and send them off to market. Fingers crossed we top the market, they are a pretty nice set of calves. So tuesday they get loaded, Wednesday we make the three hour drive to watch them sell and get the cheque, on Thursday we have to deliver some freezer beef and again on Friday. See, I told you it was a busy couple of weeks.
November 2, 2012
Sharpest tacks...just saying
Got our flu shot today. Ouch...why do I always get the girls with the ham fists... felt like she was trying to jab a pencil in my arm for the love of God.
We tied the 45 minute drive to get the shot in with taking our bottles to the depot. I spent an hour last week resorting them all and counting carefully so that I knew how many there were and what we could expect as payment. For my convenience I put them in bags of 60 (that's what fit in each bag), and told Rbt that day that I was going to do an honesty check on the depot.
A few years ago, after my son moved out of the house next door, we got the task of taking all their empty bottles to the depot. I estimated about $ 145. worth but were paid only 75. I squawked, but they were throwing them into a huge dumpster type bin as they sorted them and so there was no way to recount.
A deliberate move on their part I still think. We left it, but since then we have changed depots and I thought I would test these new folks.
So I counted and we should have got $ 75.oo + change. I climbed into the back of the truck to hand the many bags to his lordship, I have to untie them too he's all thumbs...and just rips them open ( I wanted to re-use them) and he quietly asks me how many in this bag? 60 bottles I said, and he goes up to the window, hands the bag to the guy there and tells him " there are 60 bottles in this bag !!! I told him not to tell them what was in each bag, when he came back for a second but he continued to do it.......I could have strangled him, I must have had a really bad look on my face because he was looking at me kinda funny.... oh believe me, I wanted to say something....but it wouldn't have been nice...and I've been told I am too hard on his sensitive feelings...well then he shouldn't be such an imbecile and I wouldn't refer to him as a dim bulb. Just saying... They aren't going to cheat you if you let them know that you know exactly how many bottles you have per bag....duhhhhhhh
we just needed to know and then if they counted the same, (which I hoped they would) then they pass the test and we would keep dealing with them...all without them knowing. That's the point of an undercover op....arggghhhhh
After I explained it to him three times in the truck on the way home, he sheepishly apologized, he didn't realize that was why I had counted them. Ugh... and people wonder why I have gray hair and a twitchy eyelid.
We tied the 45 minute drive to get the shot in with taking our bottles to the depot. I spent an hour last week resorting them all and counting carefully so that I knew how many there were and what we could expect as payment. For my convenience I put them in bags of 60 (that's what fit in each bag), and told Rbt that day that I was going to do an honesty check on the depot.
A few years ago, after my son moved out of the house next door, we got the task of taking all their empty bottles to the depot. I estimated about $ 145. worth but were paid only 75. I squawked, but they were throwing them into a huge dumpster type bin as they sorted them and so there was no way to recount.
A deliberate move on their part I still think. We left it, but since then we have changed depots and I thought I would test these new folks.
So I counted and we should have got $ 75.oo + change. I climbed into the back of the truck to hand the many bags to his lordship, I have to untie them too he's all thumbs...and just rips them open ( I wanted to re-use them) and he quietly asks me how many in this bag? 60 bottles I said, and he goes up to the window, hands the bag to the guy there and tells him " there are 60 bottles in this bag !!! I told him not to tell them what was in each bag, when he came back for a second but he continued to do it.......I could have strangled him, I must have had a really bad look on my face because he was looking at me kinda funny.... oh believe me, I wanted to say something....but it wouldn't have been nice...and I've been told I am too hard on his sensitive feelings...well then he shouldn't be such an imbecile and I wouldn't refer to him as a dim bulb. Just saying... They aren't going to cheat you if you let them know that you know exactly how many bottles you have per bag....duhhhhhhh
we just needed to know and then if they counted the same, (which I hoped they would) then they pass the test and we would keep dealing with them...all without them knowing. That's the point of an undercover op....arggghhhhh
After I explained it to him three times in the truck on the way home, he sheepishly apologized, he didn't realize that was why I had counted them. Ugh... and people wonder why I have gray hair and a twitchy eyelid.
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